Equivox

Merry Xmas everyone!

Featuring our full singing cast!

Introducing our newest Soprano, Gail!

Of course, what's Xmas without wine and log cakes?

Courtesy of Adrian...

And Simon!

That's when things started to get a little weird...

For more Xmas mania and quirkiness, the full set can be found... Here!

Labels: Xmas

equivox left a thought at

1:09 AM,
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A Good A Cappella Repertoire?

A cappella in Singapore has come a long way. I remember my first encounter with the a cappella scene in Singapore was when I heard In-A-Chord perform Christmas songs at some shopping centre. I was fascinated with the fact that there were no instruments used at all(except, some may argue, the voice, of course). I was amazed by the fact the voices could blend into a single chord and sometimes it was quite difficult to distinguish the individual parts from one another(some say that is a trademark of a good a cappella group).

I guess anyone who is listening to vocal harmony for the first time will, like me, be enthralled by its novelty first and foremost. No instruments! No synthetic drum pads! Just a mouth with plenty of rhythmic spitting(trust me on the spitting part)! And I'm guessing that for most of the groups that have sprung up recently, it was this novelty factor that they wanted to portray.

It is of course heartening to see the scene flourishing with many groups(some of solid standard, mind you. Just because it's local doesn't mean it sux yeah?). The competition amongst the groups in the annual A Cappella Championships gets tougher every year, so i'm a little relieved that Equivox won it early. I don't want to end up stripping for *ahem* bonus points.

So I guess with so many groups around having a decent ability to sing a cappella, it only makes sense to start thinking about where a cappella should go. And by that, I am really talking about the repertoire that groups should possess.

First and foremost, a group's repertoire should be sufficiently challenging for most, if not all, of its singers. for example, it could be written so that it can stretch a member's range, or it could be rhythmically demanding, or it could simply have "complicated" chord changes so that members can brush up on their intonation for various intervals. By writing more of such stuff, practice sessions can become more effective. How so? I know from experience, that difficult songs tend to be memorised more easily. Furthermore, a group that is singing a song that is too easy for most of its members will be inclined to make more mistakes during performances simply because singers tend to become complacent. Thirdly, when every singer knows that he/she will be challenged at practice sessions, the sessions themselves become more focussed, and things get done/learnt more quickly. Besides, it just feels good to have tamed those difficult notes. Ideally, a group should 'level' up after learning a song.

Secondly, the songs should be interesting, either by themselves, or the arranger has arranged it in an interesting way. I think this is quite obvious. If the song is boring, but difficult, what reasons are there for learning it? No one wants to perform such a song, and the group will be unmotivated even to learn it, let alone memorising it. Some will ask me why shouldn't this point be of utmost priority? Basically, it is my belief that the challenges in a song itself will make the song an interesting one. But this really brings us to our next point...

If an arranger tries to be difficult just for difficulty's sake. the members will not be motivated to learn the song. How would it feel if I wrote a 3 octave jump for my sop just to make sure she can do it? Songs must be challenging, but they shouldn't be written just for difficulty's sake. There are etudes which are fun, and there are etudes. Some etudes, you want to do them again and again until you've reached an insane level of execution. But some, you just want to leave if for the day that never comes. Let the sophisticated elements in the music challenge your singers. No point forcing them to tackle tritone intervals because you have deliberately littered them all over the place without due consideration for voice-leading and the fact that some other part may find the note easier to hit. So point no. 3: Songs must be meaningful to the group in levelling the group up.

I could go on forever about repertoire, but I think most of beginning arrangers out that will know what i'm getting at. Mere transcriptions of the favourite songs on radio are fine as long as the group is not solely focussed on doing a song a cappella just because the group CAN do it. Exercise some creativity. Make the song sound BETTER when your group sings it. Make everyone(including other groups) want to sing the song. But make sure that there is no way other groups to sound better than your group doing the same song. And then you will know that you have a good repertoire.

Yours truly,
Simon
Resident Baritone

equivox left a thought at

7:50 PM,
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on 15NOV 08

Clap your hands to our performance as we sing right in the heartlands!
CLAP stands for The Community Life Arts Programme,
and along with the ethos of this outreach by CDC,
Equivox also believes that the arts and singing should be enjoyed by everyone!

So catch us as we'll be singing LIVE acapella music in:
Venue: Bukit Merah Central Amphitheatre
Date: 15Nov 08 Sat
Time: 730-9pm

equivox left a thought at

12:12 PM,
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Vocal Obsession III - an a cappella concert by Resonance

Resonance, a campus a cappella group from NUS, will be holding their third major a cappella concert on Saturday June 28, 7.30pm, at the NUS UCC Theatre. Tickets available at $15. To book, please call Suhui (9661 5384) or Daniel (9090 4176). Visit vocalobsession.blogspot.com !

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6:29 PM,
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Singapore Art Cafe, May 28 2008

Many thanks to Jonathan of the Singapore Art Cafe for hosting us, and for your kind assistance during the entire evening. SAC is a delightful cafe, and an excellent platform for up-and-coming musicians; we had an awesome time performing there. Do check it out at the library@esplanade!

Labels: singapore art cafe equivox library esplanade

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10:35 PM,
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UM-NUS Inter-Varsity Tunku Chancellor Golf Tournament 2008 Welcome Reception -
5 May 08, Shangri-La Hotel, Singapore

Photo: NUS Office of Alumni Relations

looked great, tasted even better

Performing at this event was a great honour and an exhilarating experience. Evidently, the dinner we had was one of the highlights of that marvellous evening :)

Labels: UM-NUS Inter-Varsity Tunku Chancellor Golf Tournament 2008 Welcome Reception equivox Shangri-La Hotel singapore

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11:04 PM,
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caroling at the atrium@orchard

...and a brief pre-show respite.

equivox left a thought at

11:36 PM,
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About Us

A local a cappella group with an expansive repertoire of popular and classic numbers, Equivox will impress audiences young and old with its smooth vocals and musical finesse. Winners of the 2006 National A Cappella Championships in Singapore, Equivox's personalised renditions of radio hits and indie favourites will delight regular music lovers and a cappella enthusiasts alike. Welcome to our blog!

Equivox is: Shin Ni, Serene, Simon, Huai Zhi & Adrian

CONTACT: we.are.equivox@gmail.com

Alternatively, visit us at www.myspace.com/weareequivox

Video Clips

Stickwitu (by The Pussycat Dolls feat. Avant)
My Immortal (by Evanescence)
Feelin' So Good (by Olivia)
Silver Bells
The Christmas Song
random Christmas carols
Ming Tian Wo Yao Jia Gei Ni ('yume ga kanau nara')
Sukiyaki ('U e wo muite arukou')

Audio Clips

Nan Ping Wan Zhong (a Chinese classic by Ping Tsui)
My Immortal (by Evanescence)

For more audio clips, visit http://metastasis.multiply.com/music

Past Performances

2008

- The Community Life Arts Programme (CLAP!) @ Far East Plaza, 1 Aug 08
- Singapore Art Cafe @ Esplanade, 28 May 08
- Singapore Aids Candlelight Memorial 2008 @ Singapore Management University, 18 May 08
- UM-NUS Inter-Varsity Tunku Chancellor Golf Tournament 2008 Welcome Reception @ Shangri-La Hotel, Singapore, 5 May 08

2007

- Christmas caroling @ Velocity, Novena Square, 15 Dec 07
- Giving from the heart @ The Atrium, 9 & 23 Dec 07
- Christmas carolling @ Change Alley, 5 Dec 07
- Wedding functions on 9 Jun, 28 Jul & 28 Sep 07
- NUS Homecoming 2007, NUS MPSH1 & Bt Timah Campus, 7 & 8 Jul 07
- Catholic High Music Awards 2007, Catholic High School, 7 Jul 07: Guest performer
- Singapore Arts Festival 2007, Arts on the Move, Raffles City, 26 & 27 May 07
- The Stage Is Yours @ South East (Southeast CDC & NAC event), 10 Mar 07
- International Academic Advisory Panel Dinner, Istana, 11 Jan 07

2006

- "be!Dazzled" : A Cappella Fest 2006, Victoria Theatre, 15 & 16 Oct 06: Guest performer
- National A Cappella Championships 2006, Esplanade Concourse, 20 Jul 06: Winner
- NUS Commencement Dinner 2006, University Cultural Centre, 15 Jul 06
- Vocal Obsession II (a public concert by NUS Resonance), Singapore Polytechnic Auditorium, 24 Jun 06

2005

- NUS State of University Address, NUS University Cultural Centre, Nov 05
- NUS Freshmen Inauguration Ceremony, University Cultural Centre, Aug 05

heh heh.